Tuesday 10 March 2020

Book Review: Anthropocene Rag by Alex Irvine (Sci-Fi)

Title: Anthropocene Rag
Author: Alex Irvine
Publisher:
Tor

Publication Date: 31 March 2020
Pages:
256
Format:
eBook - EPUB
Genre:
Sci-Fi
Source:
ARC via NetGalley

 


In the future United States, our own history has faded into myth and traveling across the country means navigating wastelands and ever-changing landscapes.

The country teems with monsters and artificial intelligences try to unpack their own becoming by recreating myths and legends of their human creators. Prospector Ed, an emergent AI who wants to understand the people who made him, assembles a ragtag team to reach the mythical Monument City.

In this nanotech Western, Alex Irvine infuses American mythmaking with terrifying questions about the future and who we will become.


Anthropocene Rag  has proven a difficult book to review, because I am still not sure how I felt about it. Essentially, I loved the premise and the idea of an AI bringing together a group of people, and there were moments of great humour and fun. However, at the end, I was left asking myself what it had all been about. I also found the narrative voice a little off-putting at times. That said, this book did offer something new and different, and the concept behind it was fresh and fun, so I am giving it 3.5 stars overall. Check it out if you are looking for a quick and quirky sci-fi read.

I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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